This invention pertains to articles for temporary storage of perishable, edible foodstuffs, and more particularly to insulated articles for convenient, temporary storage of human breast milk and infant formulas.
Coolers are commonly used to store food and beverage items that must be kept at low temperatures to prevent spoilage. Coolers are available in various sizes and shapes from the large hard-sided insulated chests to the individual soft-sided lunch sacks. These coolers are designed for the sole purpose of keeping perishable foodstuffs cold. Coolers generally have walls defining an interior cavity into which the foodstuff is placed. The walls are usually made of or contain an insulating material such as foam or air.
Specific concerns occur when transporting human breast milk or infant formula during a trip with the infant or when the nursing mother returns to work. Storing, transporting and chilling expressed human milk in the workplace creates several challenges. Discretion and safety are typical concerns when expressing milk in the workplace. Placing expressed milk in a communal refrigerator is indiscreet and provides opportunities for contamination or loss of the milk during the day. In many situations a communal refrigerator is not available, so the working woman carries a bulky ice chest to work, with the hope that the coolant packs will last long enough to drop the temperature of the expressed milk to prevent spoilage during work hours. When the parent is traveling with the baby and older siblings, storage of expressed milk or infant formula is not the only perishable food that the parent needs to think about. Other perishable foods for the older sibling must be carried along with all of the baby support supplies required. A second multi-compartment diaper bag typically fills the role of transporting additional baby support supplies. The parent ends up carrying multiple articles specialized for individual tasks.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,062,557 to Mahvi, et al., describes an infant care bag for storing bottles, diapers, wet wipes and other infant care supplies comprising a primary bag section and an adjacent removable auxiliary bag section. The primary bag section has a plurality of fixed adjacent compartments. At least one of the compartments is an insulated cooler compartment with fixed smaller compartments contained within. The primary bag section can also be used as a booster chair for dining. The removable auxiliary section provides additional storage space and has a compartment for storing a changing pad. The infant care bag is constructed of a fabric-coated extruded plastic framework.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,825,208 to Anderson describes a single-compartment portable refrigerated carrier, in particular a traveling bag having pockets for bottles of milk, baby food, and formula along with pockets for a refrigerant on the inner surface of the cover. Diapers, baby clothes and the like may be stored in the body of the bag.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,758 to Hauk describes a portable case to enable the chilling, storing and transportation of expressed human milk. The portable case includes several components, a durable and rugged case, a foam insulated chest, storage bottles and chilling means. The case has upper and lower compartments, wherein the upper compartment may be used to store a breast pump or similar device. The lower compartment houses the insulated chest. Within the insulated chest are three sturdy and unbreakable storage bottles that are chilled by coolant gel packs.
Ross Products Division, Abbott Laboratories Breastfeeding Support Cooler Bag is a single-compartment insulated soft-sided cooler. The insulated, zip-shut cooler bag includes two reusable 8-oz. gel packs that may be inserted into pockets located on the sides of the inner compartment.
Mead Johnson(copyright) Breastfeeding Success Bag contains a single compartment cooler attached to the bottom of a diaper bag. The cooler is designed to store previously chilled or frozen bottles of expressed breast milk for up to eight hours. Bottles of refrigerated or frozen breast milk are placed directly on top of the 16-oz. frozen ice pack in the zippered cooler compartment of the diaper bag.
There remains a need for a reliable, portable cooler that can be easily inserted in a larger cooler allowing the nursing mother to rely upon one system for safely storing expressed breast milk while at the workplace and easily adding the small storage cooler to a larger cooler for supplemental cold storage and convenience.
This invention pertains to a system for temporary storage of perishable, edible foodstuffs, and more particularly to articles for convenient, temporary storage of human breast milk and infant formulas. In accordance with the invention, the system includes two containers, an inner cooler nested within the outer cooler. The inner cooler contains cooling means for cooling foodstuffs while additional cooling means are optional for the outer cooler.
The inner cooler is capable of receiving items therewithin, as well as receiving cooling means that fit within the inner cooler. Preferably, the inner cooler panels are insulated to an R factor of at least about 0.29 and include at least one securing means for securing the cooling means within the cooler and closure means for selectively opening and closing the cooler to enable the removal and placement of items within the inner cooler. The first and optional second cooling means are typically capable of being repeatedly frozen and thawed.
The outer cooler is capable of receiving the inner cooler therewithin, as well as receiving optional cooling means that fit within the outer cooler. Ideally, the outer cooler panels are insulated to an R factor of at least 0.29. The outer cooler generally includes at least one securing means for securing the optional cooling means within the outer cooler and closure means for selectively opening and closing the outer cooler to enable the removal and placement of the inner cooler and optional cooling means as well as other items within the outer cooler. The optional third and fourth cooling means are typically capable of being repeatedly frozen and thawed. Additional means for securing items may be provided on the outside surface of the outer cooler.
The plurity of panels that define the interior space of the inner and outer cooler may further comprise a polyvinyl chloride vinyl inner- and outer-protective layer that sandwich a polyurethane foam filler intermediate layer. Typically the outer and inner PVC layers have a thickness from about 0.1 mm to about 0.5 mm and the intermediate polyurethane foam filler layer has a thickness from about 1.0 mm to about 10.0 mm.
An advantage of the present invention is the convenience of the nested cooler system. The inner cooler features a lightweight design and convenient handle. The attractive inner cooler may be easily carried along with a purse or brief case, making transportation of the container and milk therein convenient for the user. Additionally, the inner cooler may be simply placed in the outer cooler for outings with the children.
The present invention provides for removable cooling means. By being removable, the cooling means may be conveniently and inexpensively replaced as they wear out. In addition, an extra set of cooling means may be used so that one set is always frozen and can be placed into the cooler system when the first set of cooling means begins to lose its cooling capacity.
Additionally, the present invention may provide securing means within the inner and outer cooler. Such securing means provide sure placement of the cooling means relative to the items being stored. This increases the likelihood that each item will be maintained at the correct temperature regardless of jostling the coolers during transportation.